Full Text of SR0273 101st General Assembly
SR0273 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY |
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| 1 | | SENATE RESOLUTION
| 2 | | WHEREAS, The members of the Illinois Senate are saddened to | 3 | | learn of the death of Joseph Michael "Joe" Bergen of | 4 | | Brownsville, who passed away on November 24, 2018; and
| 5 | | WHEREAS, Joe Bergen was born to Judge Frances and Florence | 6 | | Louise (Dunn) Bergen on November 26, 1961; and
| 7 | | WHEREAS, Joe Bergen joined the Communications and Research | 8 | | Staff upon the recommendation of Senator Vince Demuzio in 1984; | 9 | | until 2004, he was a member of the Democratic Caucus staff of | 10 | | the Illinois Senate and served under the leadership of Senate | 11 | | President Phil Rock and later Democratic Leader and President | 12 | | of the Senate, Emil Jones Jr.; and
| 13 | | WHEREAS, In his 20 years of service in the Senate, Joe | 14 | | Bergen mentored hundreds of young staffers who came to learn | 15 | | that his lessons on life and work were true and honest | 16 | | instructions on how to succeed in the high-pressure world of | 17 | | state government administration, as well as life in general; | 18 | | while he worked for the Senate Democratic Caucus, he was never | 19 | | too busy to take time out of his day to help anyone in the | 20 | | Capitol who was in need; he reminded all of those with whom he | 21 | | associated that no one, regardless of their position in life, | 22 | | was beyond the courtesy of being recognized and greeted in the |
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| 1 | | hallways of the Capitol or the streets of the city and asked | 2 | | how they were doing that day; and
| 3 | | WHEREAS, Joe Bergen was the ultimate helper; he would | 4 | | happily run an errand, offer a piece of furniture from his | 5 | | vintage collection, or just pass on a kind word and smile; and
| 6 | | WHEREAS, When not at the Capitol, Joe Bergen was an amazing | 7 | | carpenter and electrician; he built decks and tree houses that | 8 | | housed his collections and light displays that, at times, lit | 9 | | up his entire neighborhood; he enjoyed welcoming friends and | 10 | | showing them his latest creations; he was a great lover of | 11 | | music and had hundreds of albums and cassettes in his | 12 | | collection, any of which he would give away to the first person | 13 | | who asked about one of them; and
| 14 | | WHEREAS, During his time at the Capitol, Joe Bergen became | 15 | | a fixture, one of those rare individuals whose impact and | 16 | | influence will be remembered not just by those with whom he | 17 | | worked but also by those who will hear of his life and lessons | 18 | | for years to come; and
| 19 | | WHEREAS, Joe Bergen was preceded in death by his beloved | 20 | | dog, Nick; and
| 21 | | WHEREAS, Joe Bergen is survived by his siblings, Mary |
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| 1 | | (Randy) Stoddard, Edward (Kathleen) Bergen, Thomas (Sue) | 2 | | Bergen, and James Bergen; and his many nieces, nephews, | 3 | | great-nieces, and great-nephews; therefore, be it
| 4 | | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FIRST GENERAL | 5 | | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we mourn the passing of | 6 | | Joseph Michael "Joe" Bergen and extend our sincere condolences | 7 | | to his family, friends, and all who knew and loved him; and be | 8 | | it further
| 9 | | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | 10 | | presented to the family of Joe Bergen as an expression of our | 11 | | deepest sympathy.
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